Betrayal
by Mogo Girl
Summary: What happens when one member of the Airwolf team seems to make the ultimate betrayal? Is this the end of the team and Airwolf or is there really something else going on here? Please read to find out!
1. Prologue

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

_Summary: What happens when one member of the Airwolf team seems to make the ultimate betrayal? Is this the end of the team and Airwolf or is there really something else going on here? Please read to find out!_

**Prologue**

Caitlin O'Shannessy sat in the pilot's seat of Airwolf, the most technologically advanced helicopter in the world, performing her pre-flight systems checks. It wasn't very often that she got the chance to fly this amazing piece of machinery on her own and normally she would be tingling with excitement – but not this time.

Taking a look around the cockpit with a heavy heart, she realized that this would not only be the last time she would ever fly Airwolf, but perhaps the last time the machine ever flew period if Caitlin wasn't able to pull off the most dangerous stunt she would ever attempt . She wasn't worried about herself but if she could do what she hoped she could do, they would at least be able to salvage Airwolf when everything was said and done. She only hoped that all of those missions with Hawke, watching his almost symbiotic relationship with the helicopter had taught her well.

If there was any other way out of this mess, Caitlin would have taken it in a flash. Unfortunately, she had been unable to come to any other conclusion than to do what she was about to do. Going to Hawke or Dom, or even Michael, was out of the question. _"They"_ were watching …one wrong move and her family, as well as Dom and Hawke, would be killed. She couldn't let that happen. _"They"_ had been thorough, Caitlin's reputation would forever be tarnished, if she even managed to live through all of this, but even her own reputation and/or life was a small price to pay for the well-being of those she loved.

She knew that as a result of her actions, Hawke and Dominic would hate her for the rest of their lives and there would be no turning back. She just hoped that somehow, eventually they would realize that she had made the ultimate sacrifice to keep those that she loved the most, safe. She had no regrets about her final Airwolf mission.

That was not to say, however, that Caitlin O'Shannessy had no regrets in life. The one major regret was never letting Stringfellow Hawke know how she really felt for him. Sure, she had been a good friend but what she had come to feel for that man was so much deeper than friendship or even just ordinary love. But now, he would never know and maybe it was better this way. At least he wouldn't blame himself for losing yet another person he had become to close with.

As dawn broke and the morning sun shone down into The Lair, bathing Airwolf in a shimmering light, Caitlin broke herself out of her reverie. There was no time to waste. Wiping a tear from her eye, she placed the cumbersome flight helmet over her strawberry-blonde locks and powered up the engines. Taking one last look around, she started Airwolf's ascent out of the funnel and headed towards her fate.

_TBC…_


	2. Chapter 1

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 1**

"I don't believe it, Michael! Dammit, I just don't believe it!" Dominic Santini yelled as he paced the floor of the spy's office at Knightsbridge…West Coast headquarters for The Firm.

"Believe me, I didn't want to either, Dominic," the white-clad spy answered as he nervously adjusted his glasses, "but we've checked everything three times and everything points to the fact that Caitlin has sold Airwolf out to the Russians."

"It's not possible!" Dominic roared, his arms waving. "You've missed something…check your facts, again! And, you," the older man said as he came to stand in front of Hawke who was pouring over a folder full of papers that Michael had given him, "why are you just sitting there letting _him_ talk about our girl like this?"

Looking up at his mentor, Hawke's eyes were full of anger, hurt and confusion. "Because, Dom, he may be right," he said softly as he held the folder out for Dom to look at.

"WHAT?" Dom yelled. "Get that thing out of my face! I don't care what it says on those papers. I know Caitlin and I know she wouldn't betray us and so should you, String!"

"Dom, sit down," Hawke instructed as he looked the older man in the eye. After a few second stand-off and a hearty "Hmmph", Dom took the chair next to Hawke.

"Look, Dom, Michael's right. I've been through all of this a hundred times. Everything checks out. A quarter of a million dollars deposited into her bank account two days ago from an off-shore account; phone records showing calls placed to and from Caitlin's apartment to a number known to be linked to KGB sources; copies of schematics of Airwolf's electrical and computer systems, detailed charts of daily routines for you and me in her own handwriting, and a Russian map marked with radar gaps and flight paths in and out of known opposition force strongholds all found in her apartment."

"Circumstantial," Dom interjected.

"Yeah, well what about this sudden vacation she had to take, Dom? No warning, no explanation. Three days ago she just up and tells us she has to have a week off and heads off to God knows where. And now we get up this morning to find Airwolf gone. You and I both know, Dom, that besides you and me there's only one person skilled enough to get The Lady out of The Lair on their own. What the hell am I supposed to think?" Hawke said as he threw the folder back on Michael's desk.

Dom sank in his chair as he pulled up his red ball cap and brushed back his grey curls. "I know it looks bad, String, but this is _Caitlin_ we're talking about. She wouldn't do this."

"I wouldn't have thought so either, Dom, but it wouldn't be the first time we've been fooled by someone trying to get to Airwolf. I just can't believe that I let her sweet and innocent act pull me in,"  
the younger man said as he stood, put on his sunglasses and headed for the door.

"Hawke? Where do you think you're going?" Michael demanded to know. "We've got to find Airwolf and I need your help with that."

"And what do you expect me to do, Michael?," Hawke said as he turned back to face the spy. "You have all your people using all your fancy equipment to try and track Caitlin and Airwolf. Me sitting around watching isn't going to help that. And I've got to get out of here," he said as he turned and left.

"Hawke!" Michael yelled after him.

"Let him go, Michael." Dom said with a sigh. "I know that look. He's no good to you right now."

"Look, Dominic, I understand he's hurting. We all are. But right now, my only priority is to get Airwolf back and keep her out of Russian hands or we'll all be sorry."

"And, Caitlin? Have you just given up on her, too?" Dominic asked as he got up from his chair in a huff.

"I'm sorry, Dominic. I have my orders and Caitlin just isn't on the top of my list right now,"

"Well, maybe not, Archangel, but she is on mine!" Dominic exclaimed as he turned on his heel and walked out.

_TBC…._

_Sorry for the short chapters so far but it just seems to be the way it's working out. I'm sure we'll get some longer ones as the story progresses. Please take time to review if you can…the muse loves reviews, it helps her know if she's headed in the right direction _


	3. Chapter 2

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 2**

After leaving Michael's office and heading back to the hangar, Hawke had jumped on his motorcycle and headed out fast and furious for no place in particular. He needed time to think, to try and sort out how the hell his world had fallen so completely apart within the last few hours.

Hawke was one of the biggest cynics around but even he would have never pegged Caitlin O'Shannessy for a traitor. How long had she been planning this? Had she come to California two years ago with a plan already in place to ingratiate herself into the lives of Dominic and Hawke in order to get to Airwolf? Is that why she had been so damned interested in the black battleship with rotors that she had been so incessant on finding? Had everything they'd been through together been a lie?

Hawke just couldn't believe that. Even with all of the evidence that was stacked against her, there had to be an explanation, didn't there? Maybe she was in trouble but if that was true, why not come to him or Dom? Over the last two years it had been proven time and time again that there was nothing the three of them couldn't handle together. There were no secrets they couldn't trust each other with. And yet, Caitlin was gone, Airwolf was gone and everything pointed to the fact that Caitlin had purposefully walked away with everything that meant anything to Hawke: his trust, his friendship, his loyalty, Airwolf, and truth be known, his heart.

Hawke pulled the motorcycle over to the side of the deserted road he was traveling, the tears that filled his eyes blurring his vision. Even though he had never admitted it out loud to anyone else, not even Dom, Hawke had known that he had been in love with Caitlin for a long time. While it may not have been love at first sight, there had been an instant attraction to the feisty redhead the very first time he met her in that jail in Pope County, Texas. The cute girl with the short red hair and freckled face that wouldn't hesitate to drop a man twice her size on his rear if she had to and who could talk a blue streak around anyone she came across had intrigued him from the start.

By the time she had been in California for just a few short months, Hawke knew he was a goner. No one could make him laugh or dared to set him straight when he needed it like Caitlin could, not to mention the fact that she had turned into almost as good a pilot as he was. And it hadn't taken him long to realize that she wasn't just some cute kid, she was a real woman with a killer smile and eyes that could penetrate his soul. If it hadn't been for his dreaded 'curse' he would have made a move on her long ago but he loved her too much for that. The thought of losing her as he had his parents, St. John, Karen, and Gabrielle, was more than he could bear so he had kept his distance, keeping her safe and appointing himself as her protector.

"Dammit, Caitlin!" he yelled as he kicked the ground sending up a flurry of dust. "Have I been that stupid? Did I fall right into your trap or is there something more? " he questioned the desert around him. "What am I not seeing here? " Hawke had always prided himself on being able to read people. If Caitlin really had tricked him for all of this time, how could he ever trust his own judgment again?

Whatever was going on, Hawke suddenly knew he couldn't just abandon Caitlin. He owed it to himself if nothing else to figure out the truth. If she had truly betrayed him, then he needed to know and he needed to find her and deal with her. If not, that meant that out there somewhere, she was in real trouble and he had to get to her.

Getting back on his motorcycle he turned it around and headed as quickly as he could back to the hangar.

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Caitlin had been flying along the ocean's edge for several hours and was nearing Russian airspace when she knew it was time to put her plan into action. She had to go down on American soil to be successful. During flight she had been keeping an eye on the weather radar and while the storm system she had been monitoring hadn't developed quite as much as she had hoped, it would have to do. Taking a deep breath, she set course straight for middle of the thundering clouds ahead of her.

As she entered the edges of the storm cell, she was glad to see the lightening strikes and hail inside of it had increased. Now she just had to wait for Mother Nature to do her thing. Out of instinct, she struggled to control Airwolf as it was thrown around inside of the storm system. Taking a final check of her position, she loosened her grip on the cyclic as she felt a strong bolt of lightening hit the aircraft, causing the electrical system to short out for a few seconds. _"C'mon, give me another one," _ she pleaded knowing that a complete electrical system failure would go a long way towards making her "accident" appear more realistic. _"They" _had to believe that the weather had caused the demise of the aircraft and herself in order for this to work. Any thoughts that she had downed Airwolf on purpose to keep them from getting their hands on it might anger them enough to send them after Hawke and Dom or her family for revenge.

Finally after another minute or so, another lightening strike hit the aircraft shutting down all computers and electronics and starting her descent to the ground. Caitlin would manually control it for as long as she could in order to cause as little damage to Airwolf as possible upon her crash landing but she also knew it had to be severe enough that "_They" _wouldn't be able to send someone in to retrieve it and fly her off. She couldn't let _"them_" win. If she was going down, she was going to make sure it wasn't for nothing. She had to know that there would be nothing left for them to take. It's the way Hawke would have wanted it had he been in her position.

Saying one last prayer and pushing the nose of the aircraft downwards to speed up her descent, Caitlin watched as the ground and the rocks at the water's edge raced up towards her. Closing her eyes, she gathered all of her courage and pictured Hawke in her mind. She wanted his image to be the last thing she saw. Knowing that she was doing all of this to keep him safe was the only thing that was keeping her from pulling out of the dive. Within seconds the horrible sound of metal crunching and tearing against jagged rock filled the air as Airwolf tumbled down the side of the cliff. Caitlin couldn't help from screaming as she was thrown around the cockpit until her head was violently thrown against the dash and her world went black as the mangled and crumpled machine lay half submerged on the ocean's edge.

_TBC…_

_A/N – I swear this story is just writing itself. The muse seems to be running on full steam ahead mode! I'm sure it won't keep up at this pace __ I hope you are finding it interesting as well. _


	4. Chapter 3

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 3**

Dom stood just inside the hangar, hands on hips, watching as String rode in and parked the motorcycle. "Well?" he said as String got off the bike.

"Well what?" String answered as he walked past Dom towards the coffee pot.

"Well, String, have you come to your senses about Caitlin?" Dom said as he followed the younger man across the hangar.

Giving himself a few moments to collect his thoughts, Hawke poured himself a cup of coffee. Turning back around, he took a sip of the bitter brew as he looked at Dom. "Honestly , I don't know what to think right now, Dom. But I do know that either way, we have to find her. She's the only one that can give us the answers we're looking for."

"Not exactly the answer I was hoping for," Dom said with a sigh as he reached for the coffee pot, "but I guess it's a start."

"It's the best I can do right now," Hawke said as he shrugged his shoulders.

"I know, String. So…where do we start?" Dom asked as he came to stand next to the younger man, coffee cup in hand.

"Maybe he'll have something to help us with that," Hawke said as he nodded his head towards the white limousine that was pulling up in front of the hangar.

"Great, just what I need, the Spotless Wonder," Dominic said sardonically as he rolled his eyes. "He doesn't give a flip about Caitlin. All he wants is Airwolf back."

"That's not true, Dominic," Michael said as he stepped out of the limo and came towards the pilots. "You know I care deeply about Caitlin. As a matter of fact, it's why I'm here."

"You hear something, Michael?" Hawke asked succinctly.

"We have a possible location on Airwolf," Michael informed the two men.

"Well, don't just stand there, dammit, spit it out!" Dominic urged.

"This place been swept lately?" Michael asked, glancing around the hangar. Performing mission s for the spy and The FIRM, the Airwolf team was often exposed to highly sensitive and classified information. As such, Michael would send over a forensic team every so often to search the hangar for any hidden listening devices or 'bugs'.

Seeing Dominic shake his head, Michael indicated for the two pilots to follow him. "Why don't we talk in the limo?" he said as his assistant/driver Laura held open the back door for them.

Once inside and seated, Hawke wanted to waste no time getting to Archangel's information. "So tell us what you've got, Michael."

"Ever since you let me know that Airwolf was gone this morning, I've had all my resources tracking radar and flight paths along the borders of Russian airspace. I started by having them focus on the flight paths that were indicated on the maps we found in Caitlin's apartment. Still, I didn't hold up too much hope. That's a hell of a lot of space to cover and since Caitlin is well-versed in using the radar-suppression systems, I figured we were pretty much chasing our own tail."

"But you found something?" Dom asked hopefully.

"Maybe…we're not sure," Michael answered somewhat cryptically. "About 45 minutes ago we received a report of an aircraft getting caught in a storm system and going down just this side of Russian Airspace off the coast of Alaska. "

"What makes you think it was Caitlin and Airwolf?" Hawke asked.

"There seemed to be some confusion among the local authorities about the type of aircraft they were seeing on their radar. They didn't seem to recognize the electronic signature they were receiving, which they wouldn't if it was Airwolf. They also found it odd that there was no activation of a crash beacon or any type of 'mayday' call from the pilot."

"Not much to go on, Archangel," Dom said as he crossed his arms.

"I know, Dominic. As a matter of fact I even hesitated telling you about it until we had more information, " the spy admitted as he brushed his mustache with his thumb and forefinger.

"But you did, anyways," Hawke observed as he eyed the man across from him.

"Look, I know you two think I'm some kind of cold-hearted monster who doesn't give a damn about Caitlin but you're wrong. Despite everything, I still find it hard to believe that she's a willing participant in some kind of criminal activity here. I want to find out what's really going on just as much as you do."

"Sure, so you can get your precious Airwolf back," Dominic practically spat out.

"Yes, Dominic!" Michael exclaimed with a certain amount of frustration. "I _do _want to get Airwolf back. I still have my job to do and like it or not, if we lose that bird to the Russians a lot of heads are going to roll, including mine. And where do you think that's going to leave the two of you if that happens?

Tension filled the air between the men as they all fought to keep their emotions in check. Finally, Hawke broke the silence, "So what happens now, Michael?" he said getting back to the matter at hand.

"I'm waiting for a phone call. There's a team on their way out to the supposed crash site to see what's really there. As soon as they reach the area, they're supposed to report in. "

"Then I guess we just wait," Hawke said as he reached over and opened the door to the limo. "C'mon, Dom…let's do a pre-flight on the chopper. If they have found her, I want to be ready to go."

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Caitlin moaned in pain as she lifted her hand to her forehead. She was somewhat surprised to feel skin where her helmet should have been. Evidently the force of the crash had ripped the helmet loose at some point. No wonder she felt as if someone was using a sledge hammer on her temples. Pulling back her hand, through blurred vision she could tell that it was stained with a fair amount of blood.

Gently turning her head to the side she tried to get a feeling for exactly how bad her situation was. From what she could tell, Airwolf was laying on it's left side. Caitlin appeared to be wedged between the co-pilot's seat and the door. She couldn't open the door as it was blocked by the ground underneath it but she figured it probably didn't matter anyways as her left leg appeared to be pinned under the console. Not to mention the fact that the minute she tried to raise herself up the least little bit, her insides screamed in pain. "_Must be bleeding internally," _she reasoned.

Doing the best she could to look around, she was happy to note that while Airwolf had taken a pretty bad beating, most of the inside controls appeared to be intact. It might take a while, but she was willing to bet that with enough money and the right equipment, Airwolf could be made to fly again. Archangel's seemingly endless resources should be able to provide whatever was needed. She could only hope that the spy would still allow Hawke to be the one to fly it.

Satisfied she had done all she could, Caitlin laid her head back and let the darkness overtake her once again.

_TBC…._


	5. Chapter 4

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 4**

About an hour later, Dom and Hawke received the call that the aircraft off the Alaskan coastline had indeed been identified as Airwolf.

"And Caitlin?" Dom had asked immediately.

"Yes, she was still with Airwolf but from I understand she's in pretty critical condition. I've sent an extraction team to go in and get her. We've got to figure that whoever she was taking Airwolf to on the other side may still be watching…we'll have to be careful how we get her out. Then she'll be transferred to a secure facility where she can get medical attention," Michael explained.

"Secure facility? What exactly does that mean?" Dom inquired.

"Dominic, you know what it means. Until we know everything that happened, Caitlin's a criminal suspect in this matter. She'll have to be debriefed and answer for her actions."

Seeing the red color climb up the back of Dom's neck, Hawke stepped in and took the phone before things got out of hand. "Just tell us where they're taking her, Michael. We'll meet you there. "

"I can't guarantee you'll get to see her, Hawke. The Committee wants first crack at her."

"Dammit, Michael! I don't give a damn about The Committee. Just tell us where she is!" Hawke demanded as Dom looked on with a smile. He could sense Hawke's protective streak for Caitlin coming back and knew that had to be a good sign.

Finally the spy agreed and gave Hawke the coordinates for The FIRM clinic where they would be taking Caitlin. "I'll meet you there in two hours and Hawke, I don't need you barging in there like a wild animal. You wait until I get there and then I promise I'll do everything I can to let you and Dominic see her but know I can't make any guarantees."

"Yeah, I got it," Hawke said as hung up the phone knowing he would do whatever it took to see Caitlin anyways.

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

As things turned out, it didn't matter that Hawke and Dom arrived before Michael, as Caitlin was still in surgery. Over two hours after their arrival, there was still no word on her condition.

Feeling helpless and going stir crazy with the worry of not knowing what was going on, Hawke turned to Michael for more information. "Tell us again what exactly they found out there, Michael," he instructed the spy.

"Hawke, we've gone over this twice already," the spy said in exasperation.

"I don't care, Michael. We'll go over it a hundred more times if we have to until we figure out what the hell happened here," Hawke said as he threw one of his patented glares towards the man in white.

"Okay, okay," Michael acquiesced as he held up his hands. "There's really not that much to tell anyways. Local radar picked up a signal of an unknown aircraft about to cross into Russian airspace. However, there was a pretty significant storm brewing and according to their reports, Airwolf seemed to fly right into the middle of it. From a survey of the wreckage there appears to be at least two direct lightening strikes and they feel that that's what probably brought Caitlin down. She might have been able to land her without so much collateral damage but unfortunately on the way down she hit the side of a rocky cliff and tumbled several hundred feet to the bottom. Actually, from all accounts, the fact that she didn't die on impact is pretty amazing. Whatever happened out there, we're just lucky she came down on American soil. Less than 20 more miles and she would have crossed into Russian territory and we'd be in one hell of a mess."

Hawke took a few moments to digest the information that Michael had just given him. Dom looked at the young man and could tell that something about what he'd just heard wasn't sitting quite right with String. He wanted to know what it was but something told him to hold off until he could talk to him in private.

"What about Airwolf?" Hawke inquired after a minute or so.

"All the rotors and the tail section look like mangled pieces of scrap metal from the pictures I've seen. However, some of the recovery team has told me that other than the electrical short from the lightening, the interior seems to have survived pretty well. Initial estimates seem to be that she may be salvageable but it won't be an easy or inexpensive fix. We won't know until we get her back to Knightsbridge."

"Knightsbridge?!" Dom exclaimed. "Uh uh…no way, Archangel. See I knew it, this was about you and that damned Committee getting your hands back on The Lady!"

"C'mon, Dominic…you think after this incident that The Committee is just going to put Airwolf back into your hands, even in her current state? There's no way. Until we find out what Caitlin was up to, there's just no way they'll agree to that."

"He's right, Dom," Hawke agreed as he walked over and put a hand on the older man's shoulder. "Anyways, we don't have the means to fix her at The Lair."

"Thank you, Hawke," Michael said shooting the pilot a very surprised look.

"Don't thank me, Michael…a fact's a fact but that doesn't mean I have to like it," Hawke retorted.

Before things could go any further, all three men turned as a doctor wearing scrubs entered the room with a grim look on his face.

"Doctor?" Michael asked with a worried expression.

"I'm sorry I took so long getting you some information, gentlemen" the doctor said as he indicated for the three men to take a seat, "but Ms. O'Shannessy was pretty banged up in the crash and we were having a hard time getting things under control."

"But she's going to be all right?" Dominic asked hopefully.

"I wish I could tell you that she was but honestly, right now, I just don't know, " he said as he shook his head. "She lost copious amounts of blood, she fractured her left femur, we had to remove her spleen and repair a lot of internal damage and all of that with a head wound that under normal conditions I would have never put her under anesthesia with. She did make it through surgery, barely. Honestly we lost her twice on the table and had to bring her back but she's in recovery and now we just wait."

"For what?" Hawke asked.

"To see if she comes out of the anesthesia, to make sure infection doesn't set in, to see if she's strong enough to heal," the doctor explained. "Right now, I'd give her about 50/50 odds. I'm sorry I don't have better news."

"Mamma mia!" Dom said as he made the sign of the cross.

"I want to see her, " Hawke said, his tone making it more of a command than a request.

Looking at Hawke's face, Michael knew that trying to refuse would only be more trouble than it was worth. Anyways, with Caitlin still in a coma it wasn't as if she could speak to him. Turning to the doctor Michael nodded letting him know it would be okay.

"Fine, give us 20 minutes to get her situated in her room than you can go in to see her but only one at a time."

"Doctor, I have some administrative ends to tie up with you, " Michael said as he walked the man to the door. "Do you mind if I walk with you?"

Dom and Hawke watched as Michael left the room. As soon as the spy was out of sight, Dom turned to Hawke. "Now, you want to tell me what's going on in that brain of yours, kid, or am I going to have to drag it out of you?"

_TBC…._


	6. Chapter 5

**Betrayal**

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only._

**Chapter 5**

Hawke walked over to the waiting room door and shut it after making sure that there wasn't anyone in the hallway that might overhear any conversation between himself and Dom.

"Okay, String…out with it," Dom instructed. "I know something's on your mind, now what is it?"

"Caitlin's innocent, Dom," Hawke announced unexpectedly. " I don't think she ever intended on taking Airwolf into Russian airspace."

"Well Hallelujah, String!" Dom exclaimed with a wide gap-toothed grin. "I knew you'd come around. But why don't you seem happy about it?"

"Because unless we can prove it, they're still going to take her down for treason," Hawke said.

"Yeah, I hadn't thought of that," the older man said as the seriousness of the situation set in. "So, maybe you better tell me how you came to the determination that she's innocent and maybe we can figure something out."

"All right, sit down, this may take a few minutes," Hawke said as he leaned against a table across from Dom's chair. "Now, think about it Dom, the crash…it just doesn't add up."

"In what way, kid?"

"First of all, with all the technology and radars aboard Airwolf, do you really think that Caitlin wouldn't have been monitoring any bad weather in her flight plan? There was no reason that she shouldn't have spotted that storm cell well ahead of time and adjusted course to go around it or over it if she had to."

"Maybe she was worried about being detected by radar if she got off course," Dom offered, playing devil's advocate.

"Yeah, that could be a possibility I guess but let's say she had no choice but to fly right into that storm, once inside she should have been able to navigate her way through it. We've all done it a bunch of times when we were on weather patrols for the military. And I checked the reports on that storm system, Dom, this wasn't a major storm. It would have been rough but I've seen Caitlin get through worse," Hawke offered.

"Yeah, but what about the lightening, String? If she got struck and it knocked out her electrical, there may have not been much she could do," Dom vollied back.

"True but that doesn't mean she couldn't have brought The Lady down manually. Again, Dom, we've all trained extensively on manual override just in case such a situation should occur. I know Caitlin's a good enough pilot she could have brought airwolf down in one piece."

"What are you saying, String?" Dominic asked as a scary thought ran fleeting through his mind. "Are you actually trying to tell me that she crashed Airwolf on purpose?"

"That's exactly what I'm telling you, Dom, "Hawke said with a nod as his blue eyes flashed.

"But why?," Dom asked. "Why would she put her life in danger like that?"

"I don't have all the answers Dom but my guess is that someone was threatening to do harm to us unless she turned over Airwolf. The threat must have been bad enough that she felt the only way to get out of it would be to make whoever it was think she was complying by heading towards the meet. Somewhere along the way she decided that if she could wreck Airwolf and make it look like a freak accident, whoever was behind all of this would lose what they were after and their threats would be voided. However, in order to do that, she also had to wreck Airwolf badly enough to make it look like it would be rendered useless to our side as well so they wouldn't come after it. She entered the storm to make it look like an accident and then I think she took it down to a low enough altitude that when she hit that cliffside, Airwolf would be mangled on the way down but the internal integrity of the machine could be maintained and it could eventually be rebuilt. She was even smart enough to make sure she stayed in American territory so we could regain possession of Airwolf. If I'm right, it was actually a damn gutsy move and one hell of a piece of flying."

"Mother of God," Dom exclaimed as he got up and started to pace the floor as he thought. "Okay, String...I'll buy all of that but what about the money and everything they found in her apartment?"

"It has to be a set up," Hawke answered. "Another safeguard in their plan. If she refused to cooperate, they set her up to make it look like she was willing participant. All they would have to do would be tip off the Feds and she'd be arrested for conspiring with the Russians. Their only mistake is that it was too good. On the surface, everything looks right but I've been wondering...why the hell would she accept that amount of money in her regular banking account where it would be flagged immediately? Wouldn't you set up an off-shore, non-traceable account somewhere?"

"Yeah, I see what you mean, kid," Dom said. "So what do we do now?"

"One, we make sure Michael's doctors do everything they can to keep her alive and two, we have to find out who was behind all of this. It's the only way we're going to prove that Cait's innocent. You and I may know it's all a set up but I it wouldn't take much for a grand jury to convict her with what they've got on her."

For the next few minutes, both men were quiet as they mulled over the whole situation. Suddenly Hawke pushed himself away from the table and kicked over a chair that was in front of him as he cursed under his breath.

"What is it, kid?" Dom asked with concern.

"How could I ever doubt her, Dom? For a short while I actually thought she could have stolen Airwolf and that she was willing to hand it over for money. What the hell was I thinking?"

"Hey, String, don't be too hard on yourself," Dom consoled the younger man. "Truth be told I had a moment or two of doubt myself but the important thing is you figured it out and we're going to set this thing straight."

Before Hawke could respond the door to the waiting room opened and a nurse came in. "Mr. Hawke? Mr. Santini? The doctor said you could go in and see Ms. O'Shannessy now. But just one of you at a time."

Dom patted Hawke on the back. "You go String. Talk to her and tell her everything's going to be okay."

"She's in a coma, Dom," Hawke said.

"That's alright, I have a funny feeling she'll know you're there. Go spend some time with her. I'll wait here and talk to Michael to see what he can do to help us out."

"Dom, I'm scared," Hawke said quietly.

"Trust me, String. It'll be alright. Now go," Dom said with a fatherly smile as he guided Hawke out the door.

_TBC_...


	7. Chapter 6

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 6**

Hawke followed the nurse down the hallway to a closed door with an armed guard standing on each side of it. Archangel was also there waiting.

"Really, Michael? Armed guards?" Hawke asked as he eyed the two sizable men.

"Not my choice, Hawke. It's regulation for anyone suspected of a crime against the government. Right now I have to pick my battles with The Committee and this just isn't one that's worth fighting," the spy explained.

"Yeah, whatever," Hawke said with a shrug. "Dom's in the waiting room, he has some things to talk to you about that you may be interested in hearing."

"I'm headed that way," Michael confirmed as Hawke started to push open the door to Cait's room. "Hawke.."

"Yeah, Michael?" Hawke said as stopped with the door half open; cold, mechanical sounds emanating from the room beyond.

"I just want you to be prepared. Caitlin…she looks pretty bad," Michael said as he looked nervously at the floor and shuffled his feet. "I almost didn't recognize her."

"I can handle it," Hawke said simply. "But, thanks." Turning away from the spy, Hawke headed into the room.

"_I hope so, Hawke. I hope so," _Michael said as he watched the door close behind the pilot.

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Hawke really did think that he was prepared for whatever he would find in that room, after all Caitlin was alive and that's all that mattered, right? However the sight before him as he approached her bed, took his breath away for a few moments. There were numerous tubes and wires that snaked out from all parts of her body, her left leg was fully casted and elevated, her face was a pattern of cuts and bruises and her skin was almost as white as the sheets she laid upon. Not to mention that the constant beeping of the machines that surrounded her bed and that were keeping her alive was disconcerting to say the least.

Hawke moved to the side of the bed where he took one of her hands in his own. He was surprised at how cold and lifeless it felt. "Damn, Caitlin, what have you done?" he whispered to her as he looked at the IV's that entered her veins just above where he was holding her hand.

Leaning over, he gently kissed her forehead. As he did so he noticed that some of her hair had been cut away to treat and stitch up the significant head wound she had suffered. _"Oh, she's not going to be happy with that," _ he thought to himself with a slight smile. _"She's spent the last two years trying to grow that hair out." _"That's okay, baby," he added out loud. "I fell in love with that short hair of yours two years ago. You're beautiful no matter what."

Feeling a little weak kneed, Hawke saw a chair behind him and pulled it up next to the bed. Sitting down, he never let go of Caitlin's hand. There was so much he wanted to say to her, he wasn't even sure where to begin so he just let his heart take the lead.

"Caitlin, I know what you did. You were so brave and selfless. I'm not sure I could have done the same. I'm so proud of you. I've always known you were something special even from that first time I spoke to you back in the Pope County Jail. And then when you showed up out of the blue at Santini Air looking for me and Airwolf, I couldn't believe it but I don't think I'd ever been so happy to see anyone before. There's just something about you, Caitlin. You bring happiness and laughter to everyone around you. I've never known anyone who could care for others around them so deeply.

But this, Caitlin, this was too much, baby. I can't believe you'd be willing to give up your life for us. I'm so sorry that you ever had to be put in that position but I'm sure if you could talk to me right now you'd tell me it was your decision and you'd do it all over again because that's just who you are. I just wish I could switch places with you. You don't deserve this.

I promise you though, Caitlin, Dom and I, we're going to find out who's behind this and we're going to make sure that they never hurt you or anyone else ever again. Your part is done now, Caitlin. I know you can hear me. You did good, baby, now I just need you to rest and come back to us. We'll be here waiting, you take all the time you need to get back to us, just promise me you will come back. There's so much we need to talk about, you and me. Things I should have said a long time ago. Just please promise me you'll come back to me so I can…." Hawke choked up and his tears began to flow as he dropped his forehead on the bed next to Cait's hand.

Suddenly, Hawke raised his head as he felt Cait's hand twitch in his. Convincing himself it must have just been a muscle spasm, Hawke began to release his grip on Caitlin's hand when he felt her tighten hers, ever so slightly.

"Yes, Caitiln, I'm here," he said as he stood and leaned over her so that his face was close to hers. "I know you can hear me. I love you, baby," he said as he softly kissed her lips. "I've got to go now, but I'll be back soon. Next time I want to see those pretty eyes of yours so rest up, okay?" Feeling another slight squeeze on his hand, Hawke slowly disentangled his fingers from her and turned to go. Reaching the door, he turned back around to take one last look and he would have sworn he saw just the slightest of smiles on Caitlin's lips.

_TBC…_


	8. Chapter 7

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

_A/N: Hi everyone. I just wanted to make a quick note here. I'm glad that many of you appear to be reading my story from I can tell on the visitor's graph when I check it and __**I'm also grateful for the followers and those of you that have taken time to review**__. However, I just want to make a quick plea to those of you who haven't reviewed, either my stories or others that you may be reading. I've noticed a sharp decline across the board on feedback recently and honestly, for us that write, it's hard to keep motivated without something to work off of. Feedback is important to us and while you don't have to respond to every chapter, it is nice if you chime in every so often…even if you don't like a story. Who knows, maybe your criticism or comment might lead to us making a better story for everyone! It just sometimes makes me wonder how I can have at least 30-40 people reading every chapter and evidently following along yet there's only 1 or 2 comments per chapter and always from the same few. It can be a little disheartening. Anyways, I just wanted to put that out there. Whether you choose to review or not, I do hope you continue to enjoy the efforts of myself and the other writers here who take their time to provide something for your entertainment as well as our own. _

**Chapter 7**

After leaving Caitlin, Hawke met Dominic and Michael in a room in the basement of the clinic that was serving as the spy's temporary office. There had been talk of heading back to Knightsbridge but Hawke insisted on staying as near to Caitlin as he could.

"How's she doing?" Dom asked as soon as Hawke entered the room.

"She's going to make it," Hawke said confidently. "But she'll have a long road of recovery ahead of her."

"Yeah? Well I know a couple of guys who can help her with that," Dom responded with a grin.

"Assuming we can keep her out of prison," Hawke said as he turned his attention to Archangel. "So Michael, I assume Dom's brought you up to speed on our theory?"

"Yes and I think you're on the right track. I've put everyone I can on tracing the money to see if we can figure out where it originated," he explained as he shook his head. "I just can't believe that Caitlin had the guts to down Airwolf like that. I've underestimated that girl."

"Yeah, I think we all did," Hawke agreed solemnly as he lowered his eyes with guilt.

"Speaking of the The Lady," Dom interjected trying to keep Hawke's mood from turning too dark, "tell Hawke your news, Archangel."

"What news?" Hawke asked as he looked up, one eyebrow cocked in curiosity.

"Yes, well…." Michael started somewhat hesitantly, " as I told you earlier, Airwolf was pretty banged up in the crash."

"That's not exactly news, Michael," Hawke said somewhat sarcastically.

"No but having her fixed and up and running in a few days is!" Dom said with great excitement.

"_What?"_ Hawke asked incredibly.

"If you two will let me finish," Michael said as he gave Dom the 'evil eye'. "As I was saying, the exterior shell was pretty much beyond repair but the computer and her internal systems seemed to have survived which I'm now guessing is how Caitlin planned it. Anyways, as you probably know, some of the members of The FIRM never really stopped working on getting another Airwolf produced. We've really made no secret of it but because of costs and the complexity of the project, it never really got very far. However, most of what they do have completed is the body of the helicopter itself…"

Unable to contain himself any longer, Dom interrupted Michael…"and String, they think they can combine the two and get The Lady back to her whole self again! Isn't that fantastic?"

"And The Committee is willing to give up whatever they have just like that?" Hawke asked skeptically.

Adjusting his glasses, Michael met Hawke's gaze. "Willingly isn't exactly the word I'd use, but after some convincing that one Airwolf was better than none, they conceded."

"How long, Michael?" Hawke asked in his usual concise matter.

"The crashed helicopter is being moved to a facility where they can work on her now. Our engineers are telling us that by employing teams around the clock and if all goes as planned, they should have you back in the air in three days."

"Good, we'll need her if we're going to get whoever's behind all this," Hawke responded with a nod of his head.

"Kid, you are the master of understatement," Dom said as she shook his head.

"Sorry, Dom, guess I've got other things on my mind," Hawke said as smiled at the older man. "Listen, I'm going to go back and sit with Caitlin for a while longer. Just let me know if you hear anything from your people, okay Michael?"

"Sure, Hawke."

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

The next two days were spent with Hawke and Dom taking turns sitting with Caitlin who was still in a coma but showing more and more signs of awareness every day. The doctors were optimistic that she would be regaining full consciousness soon, of course making Dom and Hawke very happy.

Since she was improving, the decision had been made not to contact Caitlin's family in Texas as of yet. They were still in the dark about her work with Airwolf and The Firm and trying to explain how their daughter purposefully crashed a top-secret helicopter while attempting to thwart Russian enemies wasn't something they thought could be easily explained away at this point. Once she was on the road to recovery, something would be worked out to tell her parents. Hawke hated keeping anyone's family in the dark but he also realized it was necessary. He was just glad they weren't having to give them notice of Caitlin's untimely death instead.

Finally after two days, Michael summoned Dom and Hawke back to his makeshift office saying that some information had been uncovered.

"It's been nearly impossible but some of our agents finally managed to track what they think is the real source of the money in Caitlin's bank account," the spy informed them. "I have to say, I never saw this coming."

"Never saw what, Michael? Where'd it come from?" Hawke asked anxiously.

"An old friend of yours, Hawke. Does the name Anastasia Zarcov ring a bell?"

"No!" Dom exclaimed.

"Damn," Hawke said under his breath as he remembered the attractive woman that had been part of a plot to try and steal Airwolf a couple of years earlier before he had met Caitlin. The plot had been quite elaborate and went so far as to make Hawke believe he had been in a coma for a year, his brother St. John had returned and that Michael and Dom had perished during the rescue of St. John. In the end, the scam had been revealed and Airwolf recovered with most of the people involved having been shot down by Hawke. However Anastasia had escaped and gone underground never to be heard from again until now.

"You have a location on her?" Hawke finally asked.

"Not exactly but we're closing in on it," Michael informed him. "I've also gotten word that Airwolf should be ready for a test flight tomorrow. I've told my people I wanted a location on Ms. Zarcov by then."

"Good." Hawke answered. "So I'm guessing this clears Caitlin from any guilt?"

"Not entirely, Hawke. We still need proof that she was being blackmailed into doing this. We need a confession from the Russians if we can get it."

Looking at Dom, Hawke nodded his head. "C'mon, Dom, let's go check on Airwolf's progress and then we have some plans to start making."

"You got it, kid!"

_TBC…._

_A/N: So what do you think about the reveal of the villain? Surprised? I always wondered what had happened to Anastasia and figured they would bring her back some day just because I don't ever remember it being explained why she wasn't on that plane with everyone else. _


	9. Chapter 8

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 8**

The next afternoon, Hawke and Dom were returning from their test flight in the newly revamped Airwolf.

"Ahhh, feels good to have The Lady in the air again doesn't it, String?" Dom asked as they powered down the engines and removed their helmets.

"It sure does, Dom, although it's going to take a little getting used to her again. Everything looks the same but I can tell the little differences in the aerodynamic improvements of the new hull," Hawke acknowledged.

"Yeah, but now she's even better than before and I didn't think that was possible. Caitlin's going to be surprised to see her, that's for sure," Dom said with a smile.

"I hope so, Dom."

Noticing the weariness in Hawke's voice, Dom reached over the console and placed his hand on the younger man's shoulder. "Hey, String, what's the matter?"

Turning to look at his mentor, Hawke shrugged. "I don't know, Dom. I guess I just thought Caitlin would be out of her coma by now. She seemed to be improving but yet she doesn't wake up. What if she never does?"

Dom's heart clenched at the pain he could hear in Hawke's voice. "C'mon, String, you've heard the doctors…they all say she's doing great. It's normal, she'll be back with us soon enough. Her body just needs more time to rest and heal. Anyways, for now, it might be better this way, kid."

"What? How can you say that, Dom?" Hawke asked, his steel blue eyes flashing.

"Whoa, calm down, String. All I meant was as soon as she wakes up The Committee members are going to be all over her with questions and accusations. If we can prove her innocence first, she won't have to go through that."

Letting the tension leave his body, Hawke sighed and nodded. "You're right, of course, Dom. I hadn't thought about that. Now if Michael could just find Anastasia maybe we could accomplish just that."

As if on cue, the communications system in the helicopter chimed as Archangel's image came on the screen. "Hawke, Dom, how'd the test flight go?"

"She spins like a brand new top," Dom answered with pride.

"I'm going to assume that's a good thing," the spy said with a slight smile. "And I'm glad to hear it because we've got a location on Ms. Zarcov and her band of merry misfits. "

"Where?" was Hawke's simple, concise response.

"They are holed up at a remote base camp on the Chukchi Peninsula, about 75 miles inland. It's an old airstrip once used by the Russians as a military training facility and more accurately as the base they used to use to spy on Alaskan territories. It was taken out by our forces several years ago but the airstrip and some outbuildings still remain there," Michael explained. "I'm having the coordinates sent to your computer now."

"I don't like it," Hawke said as he studied the map that Dom brought up. "I mean it's been over three days since Cait went down. If that was the meeting place, why are they still there?"

"My guess is that they wanted to make sure that the crash was legit. We've been doing everything we can on this end to make them think so. I've had our people send out periodic encrypted messages to Washington implying that Airwolf was destroyed and that the pilot has been taken into custody and will be tried for treason if and when she regains consciousness. It's my bet that they're monitoring and hopefully intercepting these messages. Of course, we all know that Ms. Zarcov is no stranger to an intricate scam herself. I'm sure she's checking and double checking sources to make sure the information they are getting is valid."

"How many of them are there, Michael?" Dom asked.

"It's hard to tell but our best guess is at least a dozen men plus Zarcov. We've picked up some evidence of surface to air missiles on the site, too. It's not going to be easy getting to her, Hawke."

"Don't worry about that, Michael. I'll take care of that, you just get me all of the information you can on that base camp. Dom and I will head out tonight at twenty-three hundred hours," Hawke informed him.

"Be careful, Hawke. And remember, we want her alive if at all possible, for Caitlin's sake. Archangel, out," and the screen went black.

"Hey String, why are we waiting so long to leave? Airwolf's ready now." Dom inquired.

"I know, Dom but I want to go talk to Caitlin first. I want to tell her that we found Anastasia and that The Lady's fixed. I know she may not be awake but I believe she hears me when I talk to her, just like you said. I don't want her wake up and wonder where we are, you know?"

"Yeah, I know String," Dom said with a smile. "Go talk to our girl. I'll make sure our baby here is ready when you get back."

_TBC…._


	10. Chapter 9

**Betrayal**

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only_.

**Chapter 9**

Hawke made his way back down the hallway at the clinic to Caitlin's room and was surprised to see a flurry of activity when he arrived. By the time he got within 20 feet of her room his path was blocked by the two guards he had come to know quite well over the last few days.

"Let me by!" Hawke ordered as he tried to push in between the two men.

"Mr. Hawke, you can't go in there. Not right now," one of the guards informed him as he watched several nurses rush by him carrying various pieces of equipment.

"Why not? What the hell is going on?" Hawke asked as a cold chill ran down his spine.

Neither guard said anything as they looked at each other.

"C'mon guys, don't pull the silent treatment on me now," Hawke pleaded. "Get the hell out of my way, you bastards, I want to see Caitlin!"

Hawke jumped as he felt a hand rest on his shoulder from behind. "String, they're just doing their job. Follow me," Archangel said as he put his arm around the pilot's shoulder.

"Michael, I'm not going anywhere until someone tells me what's wrong with Caitlin," Hawke said as he shrugged out of the spy's grip.

"Okay, okay," Michael agreed seeing that it would be more trouble to try and remove Hawke then to tell him the truth. "Caitlin's coded, Hawke. She went into heart failure about 10 minutes ago. The doctors are in there doing everything they can to get her back."

For a few minutes, Hawke just stared at the spy and then his knees went weak and he slid down the wall behind him. "No," was all he was able to get out as his tears fell.

Kneeling down next to the distraught man, Michael reached out and put his hand on Hawke's arm. "It's not over, Hawke. Those are the best doctors in the country in the room with her. They're ready for situations just like this. Not to mention that Cait is young and strong, she'll fight."

"I don't think I can do this anymore, Michael," Hawke said wearily as he looked up. "Everytime I turn around, I'm losing someone I love. I have nothing left to give."

Michael stood up and banged his cane against the tile floor. "Well, I never thought I'd see the day when Stringfellow Hawke gave up. And what the hell am I supposed to tell Caitlin in there when they save her?," he said with disgust as he pointed his cane towards Caitlin's room. "That this was just too hard for YOU and that all of the pain and hurt she's put herself through was all for nothing because Stringfellow Hawke just couldn't take it anymore? Well I tell you, I never thought I'd say this but, Hawke, you're a coward!" Michael argued. Of course he didn't really mean any of it and he knew it was hurting Hawke to hear it but he had to get through to him.

Hawke looked up at the spy with a piercing stare as he slowly stood back up. Michael braced himself for the blow he was sure was coming.

"Archangel?" a voice said. The two men turned to see a doctor standing next to them.

"Doctor, Is she...?" Hawke answered haltingly, all anger forgotten.

"She's fine," the doctor answered succinctly.

"What happened? I thought she was getting better?" Hawke asked.

"Her body's been under a lot of stress, Mr. Hawke," the doctor explained. "Not to mention the blood she had lost, she was weak and she just didn't have the strength to keep her heart working at top capacity. But we got to her quickly and she was revived right away so there should be no lasting damage. We've put her back under heavy sedation to allow her body more time to rest and heal. I still expect her to make a full recovery."

"Thank God," Michael said under his breath.

"Now if you two will excuse me, I have a few more things to take care of with Ms. O'Shannessy to make sure she's resting comfortably," the doctor said as he turned and headed back into Cait's room.

"Hawke..." Michael started to say but was quickly interrupted by the younger man.

"No, Michael, it's okay. I understand what you were doing and I appreciate it. You were right, I was just feeling sorry for myself. Thanks." Hawke said as he hung his head.

"Look, Hawke. We've all been under a lot of strain these last few days."

"No, no more excuses, " Hawke said as he straightened his shoulders and a new resolve came over him. "Do me a favor, Michael. Keep an eye on her and let her know that I'll be back when we've got Anastasia Zarcov and all of her associates taken care of. Tell her I won't let her down, not again."

"Of course, Hawke." Michael said as he watched the determined pilot turn and walk out the door. "Be careful, my friend...Caitlin needs you."

_TBC..._

_A/N: sorry for such a short chapter but I wanted to get something out. Next chapter we'll get into the fight with Zarcov and it should be longer. _


	11. Chapter 10

**Betrayal**

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only_.

**Chapter 10**

Within several hours, Hawke and Dom were approaching the abandoned airstrip where Zarcov and her men were reported to be held up. Using all of Airwolf's capabilities, Hawke had flown directly into Russian airspace and effectively right under their noses by employing radar suppression at full power and flying as low to the ground and water as possible. As soon as they were within range, Hawke had Dom start to scan the area.

"What do you have, Dom?"

"Pretty much what Archangel told us, String," Dom informed the younger pilot. "Looks like about a dozen people milling around down there. They all seem to be concentrated around the main building on the east end of the strip, probably an old hangar from the looks of it."

"What about military hardware? How well are they equipped?"

"Looks like two Mi-24 helicopters, both fully armed with chain guns and various missiles. But what worries me more, String, are the S-75 Dvina surface to air missiles. Looks like three set ups down there. "

"Okay, bring those up on the radar for me. It's the middle of the night and hopefully we have the element of surprise on our side. Let's take out the SAMs first before they have a chance to launch them and then we'll just have to play the rest by ear. Arm the chain guns and cannons," Hawke ordered.

"Guns and cannons ready," Dom confirmed.

"Ready, Dom?"

"Let's do this, String."

Lowering the face shield on his helmet and turning on the night vision, Hawke took Airwolf down and within firing range of her targets. As soon as he had the surface to air missile launchers in sight he quickly dispatched three sets of cannon fire effectively taking them out with large explosions that sent shock waves back up towards Airwolf. Within seconds, the activity on the ground was at a frenzied level.

"Well that certainly got their attention!" Dom said with a grin as Hawke quickly brought Airwolf back around and headed straight towards the hangar and the two helicopters that were now being powered up.

"They're arming and getting ready to take off, String! I don't think we have time to get both of them," Dom announced.

"Where's Zarcov?" Hawke demanded to know.

"She's in the second chopper, the one behind the hangar," Dom informed him.

"Okay, give me a hellfire," Hawke said as he quickly turned Airwolf and aimed his armament at the first chopper.

"String, what are you doing? Zarcov's in the other one!" Dom exclaimed.

"I know. I want her alive. Shooting her down is too easy," Hawke said with a determined growl. "Keep an eye on her while I take care of this one." As soon as the first chopper took off, Hawke fired the hellfire missile and watched as the chopper exploded into a thousand tiny pieces.

"Get me their radio frequency, Dom," he ordered as he circled around towards the chopper that Zarcov was in.

"They're armed and ready to fight, String. Somehow I don't think she's going to want to talk to you," Dominic warned.

"She'll talk, trust me. Just make sure the Sunbursts are ready just in case," Hawke instructed as he flipped on his radio. "Zarcov! You better tell your men to set her down!" Hawke warned.

"Ah, Mr. Hawke," Anastasia Zarcov in answered in her smooth Eastern European accent. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You and that helicopter of yours seem to have more lives than a cat."

"Thanks to Caitlin O'Shannessy. Sorry Zarcov, but you're no match of wits against her," Hawke shot back.

"Yes, it seems that I underestimated her. She's proven to be a worthy opponent, just like you. I told my higher-ups this wasn't going to be easy. They're not going to be happy to find out that we've failed once again."

"Higher ups?" Hawke asked. "Who are you working for? I want names, Zarcov!"

"Just like that? Oh no, Mr. Hawke, it's not that easy. Anyways, this way I get to go out knowing that you'll always be looking over your shoulder for the next time. It's a small satisfaction but it's all I've got left at this point. It's been a pleasure, Hawke, and give my regards to Ms. O'Shannessy...she's earned my respect and that of my superiors. Im sure they'll be keeping an extra close eye on her as well," Zarcov concluded as she cut the communications link.

"String! They're firing their Copperheads!" Dom announced.

"Dammit! Send out a sunburst," Hawke ordered as he swung Airwolf out of the missile's path and came around so that he was behind the Russian chopper. "C'mon Zarcov, don't make me do this," he said to himself as he armed Airwolf with another hellfire. He had wanted to take the Russian agent alive, especially now that he knew there were others that had been behind the attempt to confiscate Airwolf. However, he soon realized that was probably not going to happen as Dom confirmed that the other chopper was rearming and making an attempt to come back around to fire again at Airwolf.

"Damn!" Hawke said as he waited until the last possible moment and then shot off the hellfire causing a direct hit. He and Dom watched silently as the chopper exploded and the pieces rained to the ground below them.

After a few seconds, Dom reached up and put his hand on Hawke's shoulder. "C'mon kid, let's get back to Cailtlin. We've done what we came to do."

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW AW**

"I'm sorry, gentlemen, but so far we've got nothing. There just doesn't seem to be any information on who Zarcov was working for," Michael said as he hung up the phone in his makeshift office at the clinic. "I've had every available agent and information source trying to find something and everything leads us back to the fact that she appeared to be working alone. We'll keep trying..."

"Trying, Michael?" Hawke said with scorn as he looked upon the spy with disdain. "Trying's not good enough! How am I supposed to tell Caitlin that after all she put herself through, the person responsible is still out there?"

"I'm doing all I can, Hawke. Look, we should have some time. It took them over two years to make this second attempt. They're going to have to regroup before trying again. In the meantime, I'll keep as many agents on this as I possible can. It's all I can do."

"Maybe she really was working alone and just told us that to make us think there's someone else out there, String," Dom offered.

"Yeah, maybe," Hawke agreed, "but either way, we can't stop looking. If they are out there, they'll be even more inclined to get back not just at me but Caitlin as well. She didn't sign up for this."

"Hawke, Caitlin knew exactly what she was getting into when she agreed to become a part of the Airwolf team. She's proven that she's capable of handling almost any situation. We've just got to put our faith in her," Michael said. "Now, I think you need to go and see her. I heard that she's awake and she's been asking for you."

_TBC..._

_A/N: I hope you aren't too disappointed that I left this a little open-ended as to who was really behind this latest plot but I thought it would be a good basis for a later story and Zarcov never really seemed like the mastermind type...more of a follower. Now onto some much needed Caitlin and Hawke time :)_

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	12. Chapter 11

_**Betrayal**_

_A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

**Chapter 11**

Hawke walked down the hall towards Caitlin's room with a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He had failed to eliminate the threat against them, more specifically against Caitlin, and he knew that Michael had brought her up to date on what had happened since her crash. As much as he loved flying Airwolf and needed the leverage that keeping the helicopter allowed him to have in his search for St. John, he was beginning to wonder if it was all worth it. How could he even think that he had the right to put other people's lives in dangers just to further his own personal causes? When had the search for his brother and his materialistic love for a hunk of machinery become more important than those that were with him in the here and now?

"So are you just going to stand there or are you going to come in?" The sounds of Caitlin's voice, low and raspy as it was, brought String back to reality. He had been so caught up in his own thoughts that he hadn't even realized he had made it to Caitlin's room. Looking around he also realized that the ever-present guards that he had gotten used to seeing outside of her door were gone as well.

"I guess I wasn't really sure if you'd want to see me," Hawke said as he hung his head and avoided eye contact with her.

Caitlin was surprised at Hawke's demeanor, to say the least. In all the time she'd known him, unself-assured was never an emotion she'd seen in the man: anger, denial, introspection, a stubborn streak a mile wide, and even tears of sadness, but never a lack of self confidence or inner strength.

"Hawke, come here. I need to know that you're alright," Caitlin coaxed.

"Me?" He answered with a humorless chuckle. "You're the one who's been in a coma and almost died," he said softly as he slowly approached the end of her bed.

"Are you kidding? You guys can't get rid of me that easily," she said with a smile. "But for some reason you look like you've lost your best friend when I'm still right here."

"Caitlin, I know that Michael told you everything and that you know we failed to get the people who were really behind all of this. You were willing and almost succeeded in giving up your life to protect Dom and me and what do you get in return…Nothing but more reason to have to keep looking over your shoulder for fear of the next time. I'm supposed to protect you and keep you safe and I failed."

"Seriously, Hawke? Sometimes your ego astounds even me!" Caitlin replied with sudden anger.

"What?" Hawke asked, surprised at the tone in the red-head's voice.

"I never asked you to be my hero or my protector or my body guard, Stringfellow Hawke! That's something you decided on all on your own. I don't know what it is about you but you see a woman and automatically feel that she needs a knight on a white horse to ride up and save her from the all of the perils of the world around her. Well maybe this damsel isn't in distress and doesn't need saving! Maybe all I've ever wanted or needed from you was the one thing I guess I was too stupid to realize that you couldn't give me…your love. Maybe I was asking too much," Caitlin said as the tears began to fall from her hurt-filled eyes.

For a few moments, Hawke stood stunned at the end of Caitlin's bed but the sight of her tears tore at his heart and he moved around to the side of her bed and carefully leaned over and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Gently taking a seat on the edge of the bed he reached down and took her hand in his own. "Caitlin, I'm sorry. It's just instinct. Don't you know that it's because I do love you that I just want to hide you away and keep you safe from all the horrible things we see every day? I need you, baby, and the thought of not having you in my life scares the hell out of me. I'd rather have you in my life as just a friend than not at all, so I guess I over-react and go a little overboard trying to keep you safe and I forget what an amazing and capable woman you are."

"Then just let me love you, String," Caitlin said as she squeezed his hand, "and more importantly let yourself love me back. You of all people should know what a precious gift it is. All I want is for you to love me and let me in behind those walls of yours. Is that so hard?"

"But what if I lose you?" Hawke asked quietly, averting his eyes from hers.

"Then at least we'll have had whatever time we had together and know that we didn't let our fears keep us from experiencing what could be the most wonderful thing either of us has ever known. Are you really willing to give up something that amazing because you're scared of what _might_ happen? You know, the old saying really is true, String…it's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all. Would you give you up what you had with Gabrielle never to have known the love that you felt for her and she for you? You deserve that kind of love again, Hawke. I want to be the one to give it to you." Caitlin reached up and put her hand on his cheek.

Hawke looked into her blue-green eyes and realized that she was right. He'd been denying both of them something that few people could ever hope to have just because he was scared and only thinking about his own feelings. Without a word, he bent down and put his lips on hers, kissing her with a passion he hadn't felt in a very long time, and perhaps one that was more intense than anything he'd felt before.

"Wow!" Caitlin said as they finally broke apart. "If I'd known that that would be the result, I would have crashed Airwolf a long time ago," she said with a mischevious smile.

"Well you know, Dom always says what a hard head I have. I guess something drastic was needed to get through to me but how about we leave the crash landings out of it from now on and the next time you want to get my attention, you just do something a little less severe like one of those infamous karate kicks of yours?" he said with a laugh.

"Yeah, easy for you to say to the woman who's leg is in a cast for at least the next two months!," Caitlin agreed as she gave him a playful jab on the arm.

"Oh yeah, I hadn't thought about that. Well maybe we can think of other ways for you to get my attention from now on," he said with a wink as he leaned back in for another kiss.

THE END!

_A/N: Hope you liked it. I'm not sure when the sequel will happen, we'll just have to wait and see how long it takes the Muse to be inspired. Thanks for all of the reads, reviews, follows and favorites…each one makes my heart happy _


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